In recent years, accompanying severer and severer competition between image-taking apparatus represented by digital cameras, in the field of image-taking apparatus for consumer applications, there are demands for better qualities, larger-scale integrations and more advanced functions. For this reason, special functions provided for only business applications so far have also started becoming popular in the consumer applications. A representative example of the special functions is a high-speed image-taking function for taking an image at an image-taking rate higher than a normal rate.
In the conventional image-taking apparatus, the size of an image to be processed at a high rate is converted into a small size such as ¼ of the standard image size and 4 images each having such a small size are embedded in an image of the standard rate in order to realize a high-speed image process (for example, refer to Patent Document 1). In addition, by adoption of a circuit structure for processing data from a sensor in parallel, the amount of image data processed per time unit can be increased in order to implement the high-speed image process (for example, refer to Patent Document 2).
As shown in an invention described in Patent Document 1 cited above, however, for a standard-rate image recorded as a result of embedding a plurality of small-size images as explained above, in order to display small-size images one by one at reproduction process, specifications are required for data recording and reproduction processes. In consequence, there are problems such as a rising manufacturing cost and a lack of generality. In addition, as shown in an invention described in Patent Document 2 mentioned above, there are problems such as a rising cost to manufacture the circuit for parallel processing and lost portability.
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 8-88833 (Paragraph numbers [0011] to [0014] and FIG. 1).
[Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 8-251492 (Paragraph numbers [0018] to [0027] and FIG. 1).